TaxilaTaxila or Takshashila was an ancient city in what is now northern
Pakistan. It is an important archaeological site and in 1980, was
declared a
UNESCOUNESCO World Heritage Site.[6] Its ruins lie near modern
Taxila, in Punjab, Pakistan, about 35 km (22 mi) northwest
of Rawalpindi.[7]
TaxilaTaxila was situated at the pivotal junction of the Indian subcontinent
and Central Asia. Its origin as a city goes back to c. 1000 BCE.
Some ruins at
TaxilaTaxila date to the time of the
Achaemenid EmpireAchaemenid Empire in the
6th century BCE, followed successively by Mauryan, Indo-Greek,
Indo-Scythian, and
KushanKushan periods. Owing to its strategic location,
TaxilaTaxila has changed hands many times over the centuries, with many
empires vying for its control. When the great ancient trade routes
connecting these regions ceased to be important, the city sank into
insignificance and was finally destroyed by the nomadic Hunas in the
5th century. The archaeologist
Alexander CunninghamAlexander Cunningham rediscovered the
ruins of
TaxilaTaxila in the mid-19th century.
TaxilaTaxila was a centre of learning and is considered by some to have been
one of the earliest universities in the world.[8][9][10][11] Others do
not consider it a university in the modern sense, in that the teachers
living there may not have had official membership of particular
colleges, and there did not seem to have existed purpose-built lecture
halls and residential quarters in Taxila,[12] in contrast to the later
NalandaNalanda university in eastern India.[7][13][14]
In 2006
TaxilaTaxila was ranked as the top tourist destination in Pakistan
by
The GuardianThe Guardian newspaper.[15] In a 2010 report, Global Heritage Fund
identified
TaxilaTaxila as one of 12 worldwide sites most "On the Verge" of
irreparable loss and damage, citing insufficient management,
development pressure, looting, and war and conflict as primary
threats.[16]

Etymology[edit]
TaxilaTaxila was known in
PaliPali as Takkasilā,[17] and in
SanskritSanskrit as
तक्षशिला (Takshashila, IAST: Takṣaśilā; "City of
Cut Stone"). The Greeks pared the city's name down to Taxila[7][18]
which became the name that the Europeans were familiar with ever since
the time of Alexander the Great.[19]
Takshashila can also alternately be translated to "Rock of Taksha" in
reference to the
RamayanaRamayana which states that the city was named in
honour of Bharata's son and first ruler, Taksha.[7] According to
another derivation, Takshashila is related to
TakshakaTakshaka (
SanskritSanskrit for
"carpenter") and is an alternate name for the Nāga, a
non-Indo-Iranian people of ancient India.[20]
In traditional sources[edit]
In Vedic texts such as the Shatapatha Brahmana, it is mentioned that
the Vedic philosopher
Uddalaka AruniUddalaka Aruni (c. 7th century BCE) had
travelled to the region of Gandhara. In later Buddhist texts, the
Jatakas, it is specified that
TaxilaTaxila was the city where Aruni and his
son Setaketu each had received their education.[21]
One of the earliest mentions of
TaxilaTaxila is in Pāṇini's
Aṣṭādhyāyī,[17] a
SanskritSanskrit grammar treatise dated to the 4th
century BCE.
Much of the
HinduHindu epic, the Mahabharata, is a conversation between
Vaishampayana (a pupil of the sage, Vyasa) and King Janamejaya. It is
traditionally believed that the story was first recited by
Vaishampayana at the behest of
VyasaVyasa during the snake sacrifice
performed by Janamejaya at Takshashila.[7] The audience also included
Ugrashravas, an itinerant bard, who would later recite the story to a
group of priests at an ashram in the
Naimisha ForestNaimisha Forest from where the
story was further disseminated.[22] The Kuru Kingdom's heir, Parikshit
(grandson of Arjuna) is said to have been enthroned at
Takshashila.[23]
The
RamayanaRamayana describes Takshashila as a magnificent city famed for its
wealth which was founded by Bharata, the younger brother of Rama.
Bharata, who also founded nearby Pushkalavati, installed his two sons,
Taksha and Pushkala, as the rulers of the two cities.[24]
In the Buddhist Jatakas,
TaxilaTaxila is described as the capital of the
kingdom of
GandharaGandhara and a great centre of learning with world-famous
teachers.[7] The Takkasila Jataka, more commonly known as the
Telapatta Jataka, tells the tale of a prince of
BenaresBenares who is told
that he would become the king of Takkasila if he could reach the city
within seven days without falling prey to the yakkhinis who waylaid
travellers in the forest.[25][26] According to the Dipavamsa, one of
Taxila's early kings was a
KshatriyaKshatriya named Dipankara who was succeeded
by twelve sons and grandsons. Kuñjakarṇa, mentioned in the
Avadanakalpalata, is another king associated with the city.[24]
In the
JainJain tradition, it is said that Rishabha, the first of the
Tirthankaras, visited
TaxilaTaxila millions of years ago. His footprints
were subsequently consecrated by Bahubali who erected a throne and a
dharmachakra ("wheel of the law") over them several miles in height
and circumference.[24]
History[edit]
Early settlement[edit]
The region around
TaxilaTaxila was settled by the neolithic era, with some
ruins at
TaxilaTaxila dating to 3360 BCE.[27] Ruins dating from the Early
Harappan period around 2900 BCE have also been discovered in the
TaxilaTaxila area,[27] though the area was eventually abandoned after the
collapse of the
Indus ValleyIndus Valley Civilisation.
The first major settlement at
TaxilaTaxila was established around 1000
BCE.[28][29][30] By 900 BCE, the city was already involved in regional
commerce, as discovered pottery shards reveal trading ties between the
city and Puṣkalāvatī.[31]
TaxilaTaxila was sometimes ruled as part of
the
GandharaGandhara kingdom (whose capital was Pushkalavati), particularly
after the Achaemenid period, but
TaxilaTaxila sometimes formed its own
independent district or city-state.[32][33]
TaxilaTaxila was founded in a strategic location along the ancient "Royal
Highway" that connected the
MauryanMauryan capital at
PataliputraPataliputra in Bihar,
with ancient Peshawar, Puṣkalāvatī, and onwards towards Central
Asia via Kashmir, Bactria, and Kāpiśa.[34]
TaxilaTaxila thus changed hands
many times over the centuries, with many empires vying for its
control.

Eastern border of the Achaemenid Empire

Achaemenid[edit]
See also: Achaemenid invasion of the Indus Valley
Archaeological excavations show that the city may have grown
significantly during the rule of the Persian
Achaemenid EmpireAchaemenid Empire in the
6th century BCE. In 516 BCE,
Darius IDarius I embarked on a campaign to
conquer Central Asia,
ArianaAriana and Bactria, before marching onto what is
now
AfghanistanAfghanistan and northern Pakistan. Emperor Darius spent the winter
of 516-515 BCE in the
GandharaGandhara region surrounding Taxila, and prepared
to conquer the Indus Valley, which he did in 515 BCE,[35] after which
he appointed
Scylax of Caryanda to explore the
Indian OceanIndian Ocean from the
mouth of the Indus to the Suez. Darius then returned to
PersiaPersia via the
Bolan Pass. The region continued under Achaemenid suzerainty under the
reign of Xerxes I, and continued under Achaemenid rule for over a
century.[36]
Hellenistic[edit]
See also: Indian campaign of Alexander the Great

A map of Alexander's campaign in ancient India.

During his invasion of the Indus Valley,
Alexander the GreatAlexander the Great was able
to gain control of
TaxilaTaxila in 326 BCE without a battle, as the city was
surrendered by its ruler, king Omphis (Āmbhi).[36] Greek historians
accompanying Alexander described
TaxilaTaxila as “wealthy, prosperous, and
well governed.”[36]
Mauryan[edit]
By 317 BCE, the Greek satraps left by Alexander were driven out[37],
and
TaxilaTaxila came under the control of Chandragupta Maurya, who turned
TaxilaTaxila into a regional capital. His advisor, Kautilya, was said to
have taught at Taxila's university.[38] Under the reign of Ashoka, the
city was made a great seat of Buddhist learning, though the city was
home to a minor rebellion during this time.[39]
Indo-Greek[edit]
In the 2nd century BCE,
TaxilaTaxila was annexed by the
Indo-GreekIndo-Greek kingdom
of Bactria.
Indo-GreeksIndo-Greeks built a new capital, Sirkap, on the opposite
bank of the river from Taxila.[40] During this new period of Bactrian
Greek rule, several dynasties (like Antialcidas) likely ruled from the
city as their capital. During lulls in Greek rule, the city managed
profitably on its own, to independently control several local trade
guilds, who also minted most of the city's autonomous coinage. In
about the 1st century BCE or 1st century CE, an
Indo-ScythianIndo-Scythian king
named
AzilisesAzilises had three mints, one of which was at Taxila, and struck
coins with obverse legends in Greek and Kharoṣṭhī.
The last Greek king of
TaxilaTaxila was overthrown by the Indo-Scythian
chief
MauesMaues around 90 BCE.[41] Gondophares, founder of the
Indo-Parthian Kingdom, conquered
TaxilaTaxila around 20 BCE, and made Taxila
his capital.[42] According to early Christian legend, Thomas the
Apostle visited
GondopharesGondophares IV around 46 CE,[43] possibly at Taxila
given that that city was Gondophares' capital city.
Kushan[edit]
In the first century CE, the Greek
NeopythagoreanNeopythagorean philosopher
Apollonius of TyanaApollonius of Tyana visited Taxila, which his team described as a
fortified city laid out on a symmetrical plan, similar in size to
Nineveh. Inscriptions dating to 76 CE demonstrate that the city had
come under
KushanKushan rule by this time, after the city was captured from
the Parthians by Kujula Kadphises, founder of the
KushanKushan Empire.[44]
The great
KushanKushan ruler
KanishkaKanishka later founded Sirsukh, the most recent
of the ancient settlements at Taxila.
Gupta[edit]
In the mid Fourth Century CE, the Gupta Empire occupied the
territories in Eastern Gandhara, establishing a Kumaratya's post at
Taxila. The City became well known for its Trade links- including
Silk, Sandalwood, Horses, Cotton, Silverware, Pearls, and Spices. It
is during this time that the City heavily features in Classical Indian
Literature- both as a centre of Culture as well as a militarised
border City.[45][46]
Taxila's university remained in existence during the travels of
Chinese pilgrim Faxian, who visited
TaxilaTaxila around 400 CE.[8] He wrote
that Taxila's name translated as "the Severed Head", and was the site
of a story in the life of
BuddhaBuddha "where he gave his head to a
man".[47]
Decline[edit]
The Kidarites, vassals of the
Hephthalite EmpireHephthalite Empire are known to have
invaded
TaxilaTaxila in c. 450 CE. Though repelled by the Gupta Emperor
Skandagupta, the city would not recover- probably on account of the
strong Hunnic presence in the area, breakdown of trade as well as the
three-way war between Persia, the Kidarite State, and the Huns in
Western Gandhara.
The White Huns swept over Gandhāra and
PunjabPunjab around 470 CE, causing
widespread devastation and destruction of Taxila's famous Buddhist
monasteries and stupas, a blow from which the city would never
recover. From 500 CE to 540 CE, the city fell under the control of the
Hunnic Empire in South Asia and languished.[48]
XuanzangXuanzang visited India between 629 to 645 CE.
TaxilaTaxila which was
desolate and half-ruined was visited by him in 630 CE, and found most
of its sangharamas still ruined and desolate. Only a few monks
remained there. He adds that the kingdom had become a dependency of
KashmirKashmir with the local leaders fighting amongst themselves for power.
He noted that it had some time previously been a subject of Kapisa. By
the ninth century, it became a dependency of the Kabul Shahis.[49][50]
Centre of learning[edit]

A view over the ruins of Sirkap.

Main article: Ancient higher-learning institutions
By some accounts,
TaxilaTaxila was considered to be one of the earliest (or
the earliest) universities in the world.[8][51][52] Others do not
consider it a university in the modern sense, in that the teachers
living there may not have had official membership of particular
colleges, and there did not seem to have existed purpose-built lecture
halls and residential quarters in Taxila,[53][54] in contrast to the
later
NalandaNalanda university in eastern India.[7][13][14]
TaxilaTaxila became a noted centre of learning (including the religious
teachings of Buddhism) at least several centuries BCE, and continued
to attract students from around the old world until the destruction of
the city in the 5th century. It has been suggested that at its height,
TaxilaTaxila exerted a sort of "intellectual suzerainty" over other centres
of learning in India and its primary concern was not with elementary,
but higher education.[52] Generally, a student entered
TaxilaTaxila at the
age of sixteen. The ancient and the most revered scriptures, and the
Eighteen Silpas or Arts, which included skills such as archery,
hunting, and elephant lore, were taught, in addition to its law
school, medical school, and school of military science.[55] Students
came to
TaxilaTaxila from far-off places such as Kashi,
KosalaKosala and Magadha,
in spite of the long and arduous journey they had to undergo, on
account of the excellence of the learned teachers there, all
recognised as authorities on their respective
subjects.[56][page needed][57]
Notable students and teachers[edit]
TaxilaTaxila had great influence on
HinduHindu culture and the
SanskritSanskrit language.
It is perhaps best known for its association with Chanakya, also known
as Kautilya, the strategist who guided
Chandragupta MauryaChandragupta Maurya and
assisted in the founding of the
MauryanMauryan empire. Chanakya's
ArthashastraArthashastra (The knowledge of Economics) is said to have been
composed in
TaxilaTaxila itself.[58][not in citation given][59] The
AyurvedicAyurvedic healer
CharakaCharaka also studied at Taxila.[55] He also started
teaching at
TaxilaTaxila in the later period.[60][unreliable source?]
Pāṇini, the grammarian who codified the rules that would define
Classical Sanskrit, has also been part of the community at
Taxila.[61][page needed]
The institution is significant in Buddhist tradition since it is
believed that the
MahāyānaMahāyāna branch of
BuddhismBuddhism took shape
there.[citation needed] Jivaka, the court physician of the Magadha
emperor
BimbisaraBimbisara who once cured the Buddha, and the
Buddhism-supporting ruler of Kosala, Prasenajit, are some important
personalities mentioned in
PaliPali texts who studied at
Taxila.[62][page needed]
No external authorities like kings or local leaders subjected the
scholastic activities at
TaxilaTaxila to their control. Each teacher formed
his own institution, enjoying complete autonomy in work, teaching as
many students as he liked and teaching subjects he liked without
conforming to any centralised syllabus. Study terminated when the
teacher was satisfied with the student's level of achievement. In
general, specialisation in a subject took around eight years, though
this could be lengthened or shortened in accordance with the
intellectual abilities and dedication of the student in question. In
most cases the "schools" were located within the teachers' private
houses, and at times students were advised to quit their studies if
they were unable to fit into the social, intellectual and moral
atmosphere there.[63]
Knowledge was considered too sacred to be bartered for money, and
hence any stipulation that fees ought to be paid was vigorously
condemned[citation needed]. Financial support came from the society at
large, as well as from rich merchants and wealthy parents[citation
needed]. Though the number of students studying under a single Guru
sometimes numbered in the hundreds, teachers did not deny education
even if the student was poor; free boarding and lodging was provided,
and students had to do manual work in the household[citation needed].
Paying students, such as princes, were taught during the day, while
non-paying ones were taught at night.[64] Gurudakshina was usually
expected at the completion of a student's studies, but it was
essentially a mere token of respect and gratitude - many times being
nothing more than a turban, a pair of sandals, or an umbrella. In
cases of poor students being unable to afford even that, they could
approach the king, who would then step in and provide something. Not
providing a poor student a means to supply his Guru's Dakshina was
considered the greatest slur on a King's reputation.[65]
Examinations were treated as superfluous, and not considered part of
the requirements to complete one's studies[citation needed]. The
process of teaching was critical and thorough- unless one unit was
mastered completely, the student was not allowed to proceed to the
next[citation needed]. No convocations were held upon completion, and
no written "degrees" were awarded, since it was believed that
knowledge was its own reward. Using knowledge for earning a living or
for any selfish end was considered sacrilegious.[63]
Students arriving at
TaxilaTaxila usually had completed their primary
education at home (until the age of eight), and their secondary
education in the Ashrams (between the ages of eight and twelve), and
therefore came to
TaxilaTaxila chiefly to reach the ends of knowledge in
specific disciplines.[66]
Ruins[edit]

The sites of a number of important cities noted in ancient Indian
texts were identified by scholars early in the 19th century. The lost
city of Taxila, however, was not identified until later, in 1863-64.
Its identification was made difficult partly due to errors in the
distances recorded by Pliny in his
Naturalis HistoriaNaturalis Historia which pointed to
a location somewhere on the Haro river, two days march from the Indus.
Alexander Cunningham, the founder and the first director-general of
the Archaeological Survey of India, noticed that this position did not
agree with the descriptions provided in the itineraries of Chinese
pilgrims and in particular, that of Xuanzang, the 7th-century Buddhist
monk. Unlike Pliny, these sources noted that the journey to Taxila
from the Indus took three days and not two. Cunningham's subsequent
explorations in 1863–64 of a site at Shah-dheri convinced him that
his hypothesis was correct.[3]

Now as Hwen Thsang, on his return to China, was accompanied by laden
elephants, his three days' journey from Takhshasila [sic] to the Indus
at Utakhanda, or Ohind, must necessarily have been of the same length
as those of modern days, and, consequently, the site of the city must
be looked for somewhere in the neighbourhood of Kâla-ka-sarâi. This
site is found near Shah-dheri, just one mile to the north-east of
Kâla-ka-sarâi, in the extensive ruins of a fortified city, around
which I was able to trace no less than 55 stupas, of which two are as
large as the great
ManikyalaManikyala tope, twenty eight monasteries, and nine
temples.
— Alexander Cunningham, [67]

Taxila's archaeological sites lie near modern
TaxilaTaxila about 35 km
(22 mi) northwest of the city of Rawalpindi.[7] The sites were
first excavated by John Marshall, who worked at
TaxilaTaxila over a period
of twenty years from 1913.[4]

The vast archaeological site includes neolithic remains dating to 3360
BCE, and Early Harappan remains dating to 2900–2600 BCE at Sarai
Kala.[27] Taxila, however, is most famous for ruins of several
settlements, the earliest dating from around 1000 BCE. It is also
known for its collection of Buddhist religious monuments, including
the
DharmarajikaDharmarajika stupa, the
JaulianJaulian monastery, and the Mohra Muradu
monastery.
The main ruins of
TaxilaTaxila include four major cities, each belonging to
a distinct time period, at three different sites. The earliest
settlement at
TaxilaTaxila is found in the
HathialHathial section, which yielded
pottery shards that date from as early as the late 2nd millennium BCE
to the 6th century BCE. The
Bhir MoundBhir Mound ruins at the site date from the
6th century BCE, and are adjacent to Hathial. The ruins of
SirkapSirkap date
to the 2nd century BCE, and were built by the region's Greco-Bactrian
kings who ruled in the region following Alexander the Great's invasion
of the region in 326 BCE. The third and most recent settlement is that
of Sirsukh, which was built by rulers of the
KushanKushan empire, who ruled
from nearby Purushapura (modern Peshawar).
World Heritage Site[edit]
TaxilaTaxila was designated a
UNESCOUNESCOWorld Heritage SiteWorld Heritage Site in 1980 in
particular for the ruins of the four settlement sites which "reveal
the pattern of urban evolution on the
Indian subcontinentIndian subcontinent through more
than five centuries". The serial site includes a number of monuments
and other historical places of note in the area besides the four
settlements at Bhir, Saraikala, Sirkap, and Sirsukh.[6] They number 18
in all:[68]

In a 2010 report,
Global Heritage Fund identified
TaxilaTaxila as one of 12
worldwide sites most "on the Verge" of irreparable loss and damage,
citing insufficient management, development pressure, looting, and war
and conflict as primary threats.[69] In 2017, it was announced that
ThailandThailand would assist in conservation efforts at Taxila, as well as at
Buddhist sites in the Swat Valley.[70]
Gallery[edit]

^ "Post-
MauryanMauryan (Punjab).
TaxilaTaxila (local coinage). Circa 220-185 BC. Æ
(17x18mm, 7.71 g)". www.cngcoins.com. Classical Numismatic Group Inc.
Retrieved 28 June 2017.
^ Allchin & Allchin 1988, p. 314.
^ a b
Upinder SinghUpinder Singh 2008, p. 265.
^ a b Wheeler 2008.
^ a b Allchin 1993, p. 69.
^ a b "Taxila". UNESCO. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
^ a b c d e f g h "Taxila, ancient city, Pakistan". Encyclopædia
Britannica. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
^ a b c Needham 2005, p. 135.
^ Kulke & Rothermund 2004: "In the early centuries the centre of
Buddhist scholarship was the
UniversityUniversity of Taxila."
^ Mookerji 1989, p. 478: "Thus the various centres of learning in
different parts of the country became affiliated, as it were, to the
educational centre, or the central university, of
TaxilaTaxila which
exercised a kind of intellectual suzerainty over the wide world of
letters in India."
^ Mookerji 1989, p. 479: "This shows that
TaxilaTaxila was a seat not
of elementary, but higher, education, of colleges or a university as
distinguished from schools."
^ Altekar 1965, p. 109.
^ a b "Nalanda" (2007). Encarta.
^ a b "Nalanda" (2001). Columbia Encyclopedia.
^ Windsor, Antonia (17 October 2006). "Out of the rubble". The
Guardian. London. Retrieved 24 May 2010.
^
Global Heritage Fund GHF Archived 20 August 2012 at the Wayback
Machine.
^ a b Scharfe 2002, pp. 140,141.
^ Lahiri 2015, Chapter 3.
^ Marshall 1951, p. 1.
^ Kosambi 1975, p. 129.
^ Raychaudhuri, Hem Chandra (1923), Political history of ancient
India, from the accession of
ParikshitParikshit to the extinction of the Gupta
dynasty, p. 17-18, 25-26
^ Davis 2014, p. 38.
^ Kosambi 1975, p. 126.
^ a b c Marshall 1960, p. 10.
^ Malalasekera 1937, Telapatta
JātakaJātaka (No.96): "The Bodhisatta was
once the youngest of one hundred sons of the king of Benares. He heard
from the Pacceka Buddhas, who took their meals in the palace, that he
would become king of Takkasilā if he could reach it without falling a
prey to the ogresses who waylaid travellers in the forest. Thereupon,
he set out with five of his brothers who wished to accompany him. On
the way through the forest the five in succession succumbed to the
charms of the ogresses, and were devoured. One ogress followed the
Bodhisatta right up to the gates of Takkasilā, where the king took
her into the palace, paying no heed to the Bodhisatta's warning. The
king succumbed to her wiles, and, during the night, the king and all
the inhabitants of the palace were eaten by the ogress and her
companions. The people, realising the sagacity and strength of will of
the Bodhisatta, made him their king."
^ Appleton 2016, pp. 23,82.
^ a b c Allchin & Allchin 1988, p. 127.
^ Allchin & Allchin 1988, p. 314: "The first city of Taxila
at
HathialHathial goes back at least to c. 1000 B.C."
^ Centre,
UNESCOUNESCO World Heritage. "Taxila". whc.unesco.org.
^ Scharfe 2002, p. 141.
^ Mohan Pant, Shūji Funo,
StupaStupa and Swastika: Historical Urban
Planning Principles in Nepal's Kathmandu Valley. NUS Press, 2007
ISBN 9971693720, citing Allchin: 1980
^ https://books.google.com/books?id=pNUwBYGYgxsC&pg=PA36
^ Marshall 1951, p. 16-17,30,71.
^ Thapar 1997, p. 237.
^ "Darius the Great - 8. Travels - Livius". www.livius.org.
^ a b c Marshall 1951, p. 83.
^ Mookerji 1988, p. 31.
^ Mookerji 1988, p. 22,54.
^ Thapar 1997, p. 52.
^ Kulke & Rothermund 2004, p. 75.
^ Marshall 1951, p. 84.
^ Marshall 1951, p. 85.
^ Medlycott 1905, Chapter: The Apostle Thomas and
GondopharesGondophares the
Indian King.
^ Kulke & Rothermund 2004, p. 80.
^
https://www.academia.edu/30145861/Treasures_of_the_Gupta_Empire_-_A_Catalogue_of_Coins_of_the_Gupta_Dynasty
^ Ancient India by Ramesh Chandra Majumdar
^ A Record of Buddhistic Kingdoms, Being an Account by the Chinese
Monk Fa-Hsien of his Travels in India and Ceylon in Search of the
Buddhist Books of Discipline, Chapter 11
^ Marshall 1951, p. 86.
^ A Guide to Taxila. Cambridge
UniversityUniversity Press. pp. 39,
46.
^ Elizabeth Errington, Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis. Persepolis to the
Punjab: Exploring Ancient Iran,
AfghanistanAfghanistan and Pakistan. British
Museum Press. p. 134. CS1 maint: Uses authors parameter
(link)
^ Kulke & Rothermund 2004, p. 157.
^ a b Mookerji 1989, pp. 478,479.
^ Altekar 1965, p. 109: "It may be observed at the outset that
TaxilaTaxila did not possess any colleges or university in the modern sense
of the term."
^ Marshall 1951, p. 81: "We come across several
JātakaJātaka stories
about the students and teachers of Takshaśilā, but not a single
episode even remotely suggests that the different 'world renowned'
teachers living in that city belonged to a particular college or
university of the modern type."author=F. W. Thomas (1944)
^ a b Mookerji 1989, pp. 478–489.
^ Prakash 1964: "Students from Magadha traversed the vast distances of
northern India in order to join the schools and colleges of Taxila. We
learn from
PaliPali texts that Brahmana youths, Khattiya princes and sons
of setthis from Rajagriha, Kashi,
KosalaKosala and other places went to
TaxilaTaxila for learning the Vedas and eighteen sciences and arts."
^ Apte, p. 9.
^ Kautilya. Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived 10 January 2008 at the
Wayback Machine.
^ Mookerji 1988, p. 17.
^ "Takshila university". Retrieved 1 April 2012.
^ Prakash 1964: "
PāṇiniPāṇini and Kautilya, two masterminds of ancient
times, were also brought up in the academic traditions of Taxila"
^ Prakash 1964: "Likewise, Jivaka, the famous physician of Bimbisara
who cured the Buddha, learnt the science of medicine under a far-famed
teacher at
TaxilaTaxila and on his return was appointed court-physician at
Magadha. Another illustrious product of
TaxilaTaxila was the enlightened
ruler of Kosala, Prasenajit, who is intimately associated with the
events of the time of the Buddha."
^ a b Apte, pp. 9,10.
^ Apte, pp. 16,17.
^ Apte, pp. 18,19.
^ Apte, p. 11.
^ Cunningham 1871, p. 105.
^ "
TaxilaTaxila Map". whc.unesco.org.
UNESCOUNESCO World Heritage Centre.
Retrieved 29 June 2017.
^ "
Global Heritage Fund - GHF". Archived from the original on 20
August 2012.
^ "
ThailandThailand to provide assistance for restoration of Ghandhara
Archelogical [sic] sites". The Nation. 16 January 2017. Retrieved 1
June 2017.

Explore
TaxilaTaxila with Google Earth on Global Heritage Network
Guide to Historic
TaxilaTaxila by Ahmad Hasan Dani in 10 chapters
"Taxila", by Jona Lendering
Map of
GandharaGandhara archaeological sites, from the Huntington Collection,
Ohio State
UniversityUniversity (large file)
Taxila: An Ancient Indian
UniversityUniversity by S. Srikanta Sastri
John Marshall, A guide to
TaxilaTaxila (1918) on Archive.org
Telapatta Jataka also known as the Takkasila Jataka